A new head wears the crown in Camelot when Morgana and Morgause

overthrow King Uther – with the help of an immortal army – in the

first half of the MERLIN season finale entitled “The Coming of Arthur,

Part 1.” The all-new episode premieres Friday, April 1 at 10:00 p.m.

ET/PT on Syfy.

In the episode, Merlin and Arthur are sent on a dangerous mission to

capture the Cup of Life, a powerful magical artifact that carries the

gift of immortality. But just as they’ve retrieved the Cup, they are

captured by the unscrupulous slave trader, Jarl. Gwaine comes to the

rescue and they escape, but with Jarl’s help the cup falls into

Morgause’s hands. With an immortal army at their disposal, Morgause

and Morgana topple Uther – and Morgana is crowned queen. The battle

lines are drawn, the obstacles are many, and it’ll take the world’s

most powerful magic for Merlin and Arthur to prevail.

“The Coming of Arthur, Part 1” is the culmination of a season-long

progression of Morgana’s evil rebirth. According to her co-stars,

Katie McGrath has relished every villainous moment as Morgana.

“She’s enjoyed it enormously,” says Anthony Head (“Uther”). “It’s

lovely when you have a character that doesn’t undergo a sudden

transition, but rather it’s been a long while brewing. I love all that

backstory they’ve given Morgana, and Katie has really put a nice edge

on it. There’s been several wonderful scenes done not just as evil for

evil sake, but to really support the mythology. Ultimately, Morgana

sees she’s got the only one avenue open to her, and that is down that

dark side.”

“It’s always fun playing evil characters, and I think Katie’s truly

loving it,” says Angel Coulby (“Gwen”). “Playing a villain, you get to

be so far removed from yourself, from being the usual generous, kind

ladies. Katie’s quite good at it, and she’s definitely got the evil

smile down.”

McGrath says the ability to stretch her acting muscles has been one of

the things she appreciates most about this role. Morgana’s character

has shifted so dramatically, it’s as though McGrath is playing a

second role.

“She’s been a completely different character this season – her whole

view of herself, her view of the world, her relationships, it’s as

though she’s an entirely different character,” relates McGrath. “But

the best part of playing her is that there is still some of the old

character there, so I get to keep my toes in both sides of the water.

I think it’s much more engaging to watch that way – you haven’t lost

the character you love, and you’re getting something new at the same

time.”

McGrath particularly enjoys her scenes opposite Colin Morgan as

Merlin, especially as the characters have gone from a near-sibling

relationship to being opposing forces in the magical side of Camelot.

“There’s an interesting line in season three where the Great Dragon

says to Merlin that Morgana is the darkness to his light, and that

really says it all about how things have changed and where the story

has gone in this season,” McGrath explains. “Merlin is the hero, and

every hero needs a great villain. What makes that dynamic even more

interesting is that they cared about each other so much. There’s a war

going on between them – they truly are each other’s foils – and that’s

intriguing to watch.”

The second half of the season finale airs next Friday, April 8, at

10:00 p.m. on Syfy.